


Opening Doors

by Im_The_Doctor (Bofur1)



Category: Video Blogging RPF, Youtube RPF
Genre: Angst and Feels, Arguing, Boundaries, Canon Compliant, Confusion, Dating, Dinner, Emotional Hurt, Established Relationship, Eventual Happy Ending, Experimentation, Explanations, Exploration, F/M, First Kiss, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Gentleman Silver Shepherd, Getting to Know Each Other, Gossip, Guilt, Making Up, Mid-Canon, Moving On, Past Abuse, Post-breakup, Surprises, Underrated Pairing, these two give me all the feels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-26
Updated: 2018-03-26
Packaged: 2019-04-08 09:03:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,803
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14101992
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bofur1/pseuds/Im_The_Doctor
Summary: After a series of unspoken, uncomfortable misunderstandings, Silver Shepherd and Roxanne explore the boundaries of their relationship.





	Opening Doors

**Author's Note:**

> Because these two never get the attention they deserve, I decided I wanted to explore what their relationship may be like. I headcanon that Silver Shepherd met Roxanne after saving her from a previous abusive relationship, so there's going to be some mention of that. (And by the way, he's referred to as "Caleb" for the entirety of the story because that's his secret identity name and it's the name Roxanne knows him by)

Roxanne knew what all of her friends were saying.

_“Oh…really? I didn’t think he was your type!”_

_“You’re kidding! I thought he was just a friend!”_

_“You know what? I have to say, you’re quite the unusual pair!”_

No matter how they said it, it always boiled down to this: they didn’t think he was good enough for her. If only everyone knew just how good he was.

Needless to say, everyone had been astonished when she’d broken up with Nathan. None of them had seen what he had put her through behind closed doors; they had all assumed they were a match made in heaven. Once that ended, she had actually lost quite a few of her friends and she was happy to see them go. If they supported Nathan and his type of “affection”, she could gladly never see them again. Those that were left, however, still weren’t sure what to think of her new boyfriend. He was the complete opposite of everything Nathan was, what they had always believed was her “type”. It was said that some people, no matter how they were hurt, always fell into the same bad tendencies when it came to choosing their partner.

Roxanne was not one of those people. She wanted a change and her hero had been that change. Every day, he managed to surprise her with something new and different, without even realizing what an impact it had on her.

Nathan had always slowed when they reached a door, leaving her to open it for the both of them. As soon as Caleb spotted a door, whether it was two feet away or fifteen, he always maneuvered in front of her and held it so she could pass.

When Nathan was sick, all he wanted was to hold her and use her affection as comfort, becoming snappish and irritable if he was refused. Caleb actively urged her to stay away, reminding her that he didn’t want her infected.

Nathan had been incredibly possessive in public—stiflingly so—and she had always felt helpless to push him away since they _were_ in a relationship and she really _didn’t_ want other guys flirting with her. She had enough on her plate already. Meanwhile Caleb asked, quiet and shy, if he was allowed to hold her hand—his exact phrasing. What kind of man asked if he was allowed?

During their first few dates, Roxanne had been irritated. She wasn’t something helpless and breakable; she could push open her own doors and pull out her own chairs. She expected him to take charge and have his way with her anytime now. When two months had passed and it didn’t happen, however, she honestly started getting a little uncomfortable. Nothing was living up to her expectations. Her expectations were admittedly low, given her past, but it was all she knew. That was how her relationships went, without fail. Her boyfriend would always be the picture of kindness until she said the wrong thing, gave the wrong permission, and they were free to manipulate her.

Caleb spent half his time pampering her and the other half giving her all the freedom and space she wanted, backing off whenever she gave any indication of annoyance. Heaven forbid she frown at him; he would leave money on the counter and tell her to treat herself to a dessert or a pedicure if she wanted while he took care of other things. Once she had stopped him before he could leave, asking why in the world he would do that. He’d just paused in the doorway, shrugging with a wry little smile.

“I want you to feel better.”

How much freedom would he give her? she wondered. To find out, she’d set up a little test, telling him about this restaurant-bar combo she knew about that she used to love.

“I know you can’t drink because of your health issue, but I’ve wanted to go there again and see if it’s still as good as I remember,” she explained, to which he thoughtfully agreed after a small hesitation. “It’s a high-end restaurant, though, okay? So I’m gonna go get cleaned up.”

Since they’d started dating, Roxanne had been wearing long-sleeve shirts, never feeling ready to show off much skin. For the sake of this experiment, however, she had to sacrifice comfort for classy: shoulderless silk blouse, three-quarter black skinny jeans and heeled boots that mangled her toes but looked incredible. Caleb quite literally jumped when she came out of her room looking like that while he was just buttoning up his gray polo.

“Oh…sh-should I wear a suit?” he stammered self-consciously, but she simply forced a smile and shook her head, grabbing her keys.

“No, you’re just fine how you are. Let’s get going.”

When they got there, mere seconds after Caleb held the door open for her, Roxanne saw the first stranger’s head turn. By the time they found their seats, two more men had looked over and a third was craning his head over his companions’ heads to see her. The entire time they were there, the handsome waiter was overly friendly and if she was honest, she complimented his service more than was strictly necessary.

This was a test, she reminded herself. Caleb wasn’t blind. He knew exactly what the other men around him were thinking; he would stake his claim, as all of her previous partners had.

She waited for it. It never came.

When they were getting their takeout boxes, she snuck a puzzled glance at Caleb, wondering what had happened, and found that he was already staring at her. They locked eyes for a few moments and then he ducked his head, exhaling shakily as he grabbed his wallet and slid out of his seat, mumbling something about paying up front. She could only stare after him in disbelief, with the sickening realization of how much she’d hurt him.

It was the worst date she’d ever had, bar none, and when he didn’t answer her cautious text the next day, it only grew worse. She must have left a dozen messages on his phone the next few days before finally receiving a text that brought shameful tears to her eyes:

 _Sorry. I’m the one who needs a little space this time_.

He came back, of course—five days later, looking sad and scruffy, but she hadn’t cared. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, Caleb—I don’t know what I was thinking, I just wanted to—”

“I don’t need to know,” he’d interrupted her, fidgeting uncomfortably for a minute or two before adding, “I just want to know what I did wrong.”

“What _you_ did wrong?” she echoed numbly, shaking her head a little. “What…?”

“I’ve been trying…to treat you right, I guess,” he murmured, starting to wring his hands as he always did when he was nervous. “I’ve t-tried to make you feel cared for and seeing you dress like that, letting—” His breath caught. “—letting all of them stare at you—I figure maybe I’m not giving you enough attention, maybe you want something else, some _one_ else, who’ll go faster with you, cross more boundaries…s-someone who’s a little more adventurous…”

“No!” she burst out, startling him. “No, that’s not what I want! I just—I want to know why you _haven’t_ , Caleb! I want to know why you’ve been holding open those stupid doors and giving me money to treat myself, leaving me flowers and making breakfast and paying for dinner when you haven’t even grabbed me and kissed me yet!”

“I—I would never do that!” he exclaimed, sounding aghast at the concept.

“But why _not?_ ” she demanded desperately, abruptly realizing that she was in tears. “D-Do you not want to?!”

“Of course I do, but I would never force you, Roxy!” Running a harried hand through his hair, he huffed helplessly. “I wanna treat you right! I t-try to treat you like a gentleman! If I can’t treat you right, how could I ever get up the courage to ask if I could kiss you?”

“Why would you ask? Why do you _always ask?!_ ”

“I want to go at _your_ pace!”

That stopped her cold. No one, not one man, had ever said that to her. As the words sank in, she took a tentative step back, stifling a sob. Caleb stared at her, wide-eyed, uncertain, and she scrubbed furiously at her face.

“You…you wouldn’t kiss me b-because you thought I wasn’t ready?” she whimpered, her heart tossing and turning in every possible direction, unsure what to feel.

“I wouldn’t kiss you until you _told_ me you were ready,” he answered, barely audible. He sounded guilty, of all things, and that—that was too much. She crossed the distance, grabbing ahold of his arms as he automatically shifted back.

“I’ve been ready since you asked to hold my hand,” she stated firmly, trying to keep her voice from shaking. Amazement and bewilderment battled for his expression at that.

“That was two months ago, Roxy…”

A wet laugh burst out of her chest and she nodded vigorously, sliding her hands down his arms to weave their fingers together. “I know that.”

As soon as realization dawned on him, she felt his palms start to sweat and loosened her hold on them, letting him choose whether or not to keep them where they were. He promptly pulled away, wiping his hands down his jeans and then gingerly sliding them into her dark auburn hair. Encouraging, she leaned into it, letting her eyes close.

 _This is what I want. I’m ready_.

He took a quick breath, she did the same, and he kissed her. Her cheeks were tearstained, his stubble was rough against her skin and she felt his fingers catch on a tangle in her hair but the prickle of pain was far, far away. She was too wrapped up in the taste—coffee, chapstick, a tangy hint of iron from where he bit his lip too often.

It was the best kiss she’d ever had, bar none.

That had been a few months ago and since then, she still let her friends say whatever they wanted about what an unlikely pair they were, about how he wasn’t her usual type. All they needed to know was that Caleb was a good man.

As always, she was forced to suppress a smile when he planted a quick kiss into her hair—without permission—and then slipped away. She was content to let him, listening to the secret compartment in his closet open and close, listening to him change and then straining her ears to catch the soft shush of his cape against the floor as he left for work.

If only everyone knew just how good he was.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed! Feel free to leave a kudos or a comment to tell me what you thought; I'd love to hear from you! <3


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